South Africa’s black empowerment and labour policies have hampered Chinese involvement in several developments – among them the proposed R30-billion Moloto Rail Development Corridor in Mpumalanga, which is yet to break ground. “The project was going to be funded and the labour done by the Chinese but the government said ‘no we will do the labour’. It was the same with a dam that was to be built in Port Elizabeth,” said investment strategist Mike Haworth. “They are not just financiers; if you look through Africa they bring their money in and their people to do the work. The BEIC plant in Coega took twice the amount of time to finish using Chinese labour because the locals got so upset,” Haworth said.